What Is A Health Coach?

It was recently brought to my attention that a long time friend has no idea what I do as a health coach. We went to college together and she’s followed my work for years. She felt like she needed to get herself together before working with me. Um, that’s what I do. You don’t have to get yourself together and work through your issues before you work with me. That’s why I’m here. Anyone can follow a meal plan, challenge, or Bootcamp but those things don’t work long term. Why? Because they don’t address the conscious and subconscious beliefs that will ultimately derail your efforts. If you want to get healthy and stay healthy health coaches are here to help you find what works for you.

Whichever coach you choose I recommend working with someone who has received a health coaching certification. The oversight for the industry depends on the state where the coach lives.

A Health Coach Is An Accountability Partner

Everyone knows that they should eat less nonsense and more real food. Why don’t they? Habits, self-beliefs, false beliefs, and food addiction to name a few. While getting healthy and staying healthy is about making the right choices it’s also about so much more. What prevents you from doing the right things? It’s not that you don’t have access to information. We’re bombarded by health information. The first step is sorting out fact from fiction and then it’s working through the things that hold you back.

When you hire me as your health coach we’ll begin with a 60-minute discussion where we’ll go over your answers to a pretty lengthy questionnaire. (That way I know your story before we get on the phone. This allows us to dive right in.) Then each week we’ll chat for 30 minutes discussing the past week and goals for the next week. On top of that, you’ll get 8 weeks of course content dripped to you. In between coaching sessions if you have a quick question you can text me. If you have a wordy issue you can reach me by e-mail. In a serious case, you can book up to 3 extra 30-minute coaching sessions during your 8 weeks.

You don’t have to figure it all out on your own. That’s what certified health coaches do. We’re here to help you sort it out so that you can be successful long term.

Discovering Your Shade of Paleo

I have what works for me but I realize that may or may not work for you. People who’ve had success in the paleo community have done it with different approaches. The underlying theme is real food but some eat more plants and others eat more meat. Some follow the autoimmune protocol or a low FODMAP approach. I think one of the biggest mistakes the government makes is assuming that there’s 1 perfect diet, one perfect set of macros, for everyone.

When you work with me we start with the basics and using how you feel as our guide I’ll help you figure out what foods may or may not be working for you. I began my paleo journey in 2014 and I’ve experimented with different approaches on myself: Whole 30, AIP, Keto, & Carnivore.

Instead of using weight as a metric of success. (Because it’s a poor indicator of health) We’ll focus on things like sleep, mood, and energy levels. Success doesn’t come overnight but when you give the body what is looking for the default programming is to heal itself. If we can watch the skin heal on the outside then it’s equally as possible for internal healing to occur too. This is how most of us became coaches. We learned how much of an impact food and lifestyle had on our overall health and we decided that we had to share it with the world.

A Health Coach Is An Educator

There’s a lot of health information online and most of it conflicts. Are eggs healthy? Should you eat coconut oil? Is plant-based better for your health and the environment? If you don’t spend your time reading health books, reviewing research, watching videos, and listening to podcasts odds are you’re very confused.

Whatever questions come up I can point you towards research if you’re looking for it. The paleo/primal template is simply about eating real food. Really all dietary approaches agree that we should stay away from fast food, processed food, and artificial nonsense.

Imagine making peace with real food. Once you figure that out you can use it for the rest of your life!

Does that mean you have to be 100% perfect for the rest of your life? No. I’m not 100% perfect and I suspect anyone who tells you they are is likely lying. As your coach, I help you learn how to choose your moments.

A Health Coach Bridges The Gap In Healthcare

We’ve all been to the doctor at some point. While it’s not their fault we all know that the face time we get is pretty minimal. Typically they come in, review the data the medical assistant captured, ask a few questions, and then usually pull out a prescription pad. Sometimes they’ll offer lifestyle changes and then they send you on your way.

I see it all the time in the paleo for beginners group. Their doctor told them to go paleo and they have no idea how to do it so they’re left to the mercy of strangers from the internet. People ask complete strangers with no formal training and then sift through the many answers they are given. Then there are the countless posts from people who fell off the paleo wagon, they gained all the weight back, they don’t feel good,  and they’re putting their paleo boots on once again.

It doesn’t have to be this way. This is yo-yo dieting in paleo form… Get the facts from someone who has credentials (not part of a multi-level marketing platform) so that you can get real answers, good answers, the truth.

Health Coaches Are The Future

We have an epidemic of poor health and doctors don’t have the time to help people make a permanent lifestyle change. If you can’t figure it out all on your own then you’ll fall by the wayside and likely watch your health gradually decline. Like I mentioned above we’re here to sort fact from fiction and help you address the things that are standing in your way.

Originally posted on January 1, 2020 @ 15:57

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